Hansel and Gretel as Gender

Hansel and Gretel as Gender Role Models

Hansel and Gretel" is an ancient German fairy tale, part of a large group of stories and folklore collected by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in the early 1800s. The two brothers spent their lives collecting stories, doing scholarly research, and publishing their findings. They were leaders and innovators: "German literature had only recently become an accepted field of study..." (Zipes xxi), but they were not the first to study folklore in Germany, "nor were they first to begin collecting and publishing folk and fairy tales" (xxiii). However, their knowledge of old German literature was vast, and they were conscientious, indefatigable workers. "Hansel and Gretel" is one of the stories they gleaned from their research, which was aimed at a greater understanding of German language and customs. The story reveals what the culture of that time expected the roles of men and women to be. When one reads the story, the inevitable question arises, how do two children triumph over evil and powerful adults that plot to kill them? The answer is through cooperation and adherence to traditional gender roles, Hansel and Gretel outsmart and overcome evil forces that would do them harm. Gretel is pious, kind and dependent, but intuitively clever when forced to rely on her own resources. Hansel is manly and protective, a leader who depends on logic. Together they survive.

Hansel and Gretel" is about two disadvantaged children whose parents lack both the moral and financial resources to care for them. The stress of poverty has presumably taken a great toll on their mother, who is abusive and determined to get rid of them. She calls her son a "fool" several times and blames the children for their own abandonment. Their father, although he loves his children, is weak and incompetent to resist his wife. The parents are negative examples of what "real" men and women should be. Eventually, the father agrees to leave the children alone in the woods in what amounts to a death sentence. The children have to rely on their wits to survive. Hansel fills his pockets with pebbles to drop along the path and mark their way back home. Abandonment happens again, however, and the next time Hansel cannot collect pebbles because his mother has locked the door, so he drops breadcrumbs instead. But birds eat the bread, and the children get lost. After three days, they find a house made of bread and candy and begin to eat it. An old witch owns the house. She entices children this way and then eats them for dinner. At first, she is very kind, but once they are under her spell, she puts Hansel in a cage to fatten him up and forces Gretel to work. The witch is an ancient equivalent of the modern day "child predator." Every day she checks to see if Hansel is gaining weight, but Hansel fools her into thinking he is still thin, thereby gaining time. Eventually, the witch grows impatient and heats the stove. She orders Gretel to get inside and see if the oven is hot, intending to cook Gretel for dinner. But Gretel "knows" what the witch intends to do. Gretel pretends stupidity. So the witch demonstrates by getting in the oven. Gretel pushes the witch in, slams the door, and locks it. She frees Hansel. They gather up riches and go home to their father where they learn their abusive mother has died. Hurray!